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Results tagged ‘ Mike Foltynewicz ’

Mike Foltynewicz saw his name in trade rumors for most of Wednesday, but it wasn’t until general manager Jeff Luhnow called him later in the evening did the rumors become a reality. Foltynewicz, one of the Astros’ top pitching prospects, was heading to the Braves.

The Astros traded Foltynewicz, pitcher Andrew Thurman and third baseman Rio Ruiz in exchange for slugger Evan Gattis and right-hander James Hoyt. The hard-throwing Foltynewicz, who made his Major League debut last year, was expected to compete for a spot in the Astros’ rotation.

“You wake up in the morning and all of a sudden your name has been tossed around in some trade rumors and you’re shocked and waiting around all day and not getting back until 9 o’clock at night to find out you’ve been traded is a little shocking,” he said. “The Astros made my dreams come true. They gave me an opportunity to be in the big leagues, and they need something else right now, so they had to do what they had to do.”

Foltynewicz, the No. 19 overall pick in the ’10 First-Year Player Draft, made his Major League debut at the end of last season after going 7-7 with a 5.08 ERA in 21 games (18 starts) at Triple-A Oklahoma City. He’s looking forward to a new start in Atlanta.

“They gave me a call and said they’re happy to have me in the organization and they’ve got some high expectations and they’re real excited to have me,” he said. “They thought I was a big part of the deal to get traded. That’s my main goal is try to be a starter. That’s what I’ve been molded into my Minor League career, but whatever they want me to do I’ll do it.”

Ruiz was taken in the fourth round of the ’12 Draft after being offered a hefty bonus by the Astros, who signed No. 1 overall pick Carlos Correa for less money than some other potential top picks so they could sign Ruiz and Lance McCullers Jr. away from college commits.

Ruiz hit .294 with 11 homers and 77 RBIs last year at Class A Advanced Lancaster, but found himself behind Colin Moran on the depth chart after the Astros acquired the former No. 6 overall pick from the Marlins in July. Moran is coming to spring camp and could be in the lineup at some point this year.

“Today was a little overwhelming, but I’m looking at it as another opportunity to showcase my talents and make my way to the big leagues,” Ruiz said.

Ruiz said he wasn’t sure if he would come to Major League camp.

“I’m sure they’re going to have me go in early and become acclimated with everybody, hopefully a little quicker than going into regular Spring Training,” he said. “I’m sure I’ll go in there early, whether in big league camp or showing up early and seeing faces and getting to know names.”

Thurman, a second-round pick out of UC-Irvine in 2013, was 11-11 with a 4.99 ERA in 38 games (25 starts) in his pro career. He spent last season at Class A Quad Cities, going 7-9 with a 5.38 ERA.

“I don’t know too much about trades and what goes into it,” Thurman said. “I know Evan Gattis is a good player, and I know the Astros are looking to do well at the big league level. And I know they had to give away some stuff to get a good player like him.”

Still, the trade caught him a little off guard.

“But I’m excited to get the opportunity to play for the Braves,” he said

The Astros are calling up another one of their top prospects – hard-throwing right-hander Mike Foltynewicz.

Foltynewicz, 22, was 7-7 with a 5.08 ERA this year at Triple-A Oklahoma City with 102 strikeouts in 102 2/3 innings. Foltynewicz, taken with the No. 19 overall pick in the 2010 First-Year Player Draft, will pitch out of the bullpen for the rest of the season.

“He’s had basically four months of pitching in the rotation at Triple-A and we feel like it’s really been beneficial for him,” Astros general manager Jeff Luhnow said. “He’s refined his off-speed stuff and has been able to work on a lot of different things. We’re going to pitch him in the bullpen here for the remainder of the year and that will give him an opportunity to get his feet wet at the Major League level and show us what he’s got. He’ll help us win some games.”

Luhnow envisioned Foltynewicz pitching in the sixth, seventh or eighth innings and perhaps working multiple innings.

“We’ll have to see how the manager wants to use him and how effective he is,” Luhnow said. “If he ends up being a guy we can use in those critical late-game situations – we have some good pitchers there now – but if he adds to that depth there, that will be good.”

Foltynewicz is the fourth top prospect to be called up by the Astros this year, joining outfielder George Springer, first baseman Jon Singleton and outfielder Domingo Santana, who had only 13 at-bats with the Astros before being sent back down.

The move comes one day after the Astros traded one of their former top prospects, pitcher Jarred Cosart, in a six-player deal with the Marlins.

Foltynewicz was a combined 14-4 with a 3.14 ERA in 27 starts at Class A Lexington in 2012, and last year was a combined 6-3 with a 3.06 ERA in 30 games combined between Class A Lancaster and Double-A Corpus Christi.

Here are the bios of the non-roster invitees announced by the Astros on Tuesday:

1B Japhet Amador, 26, was acquired by Houston on Aug. 18, 2013, from Los Diablos Rojos del Mexico of the Mexican League. He was assigned to Triple-A Oklahoma City and went on to hit .302 (13-for-43) in 10 games for the RedHawks. Following the regular season, Amador played for Peoria in the Arizona Fall League and hit .284 (19-for-67) with four homers and 12 RBIs in 18 games. Prior to his acquisition, Amador hit .368 (147-for-400) with 22 doubles, 36 home runs, 121 RBIs and a .419 OBP in 104 games for the Diablos Rojos in 2013. He led the Mexican League in RBIs, while ranking second in homers and third in total bases (277).

RHP Mark Appel, 22, was the No. 1 overall selection in the 2013 MLB Draft out of Stanford University. After his selection, he made 10 starts combined for Class A Quad Cities (8 games) and Class A Tri-City (two games), combining to post a 3-1 record and a 3.79 ERA (16 earned runs/38 innings pitched). This followed his 2013 senior season at Stanford, where he went 10-4 with four complete games and a 2.12 ERA (25 earned runs/1061/3 innings pitched). He recorded 130 strikeouts in his 106 1/3 innings pitched and allowed just a .203 opponent’s batting average in his final season at Stanford.

RHP Jake Buchanan, 24, posted a 12-7 record and a 2.96 ERA (52 earned runs/1581/3 innings pitched) between OKC (12 games) and Double-A Corpus Christi (18 games) in 2013. He began his season with the Hooks, where he was named a Texas League All-Star after putting up a 2.09 ERA (19 earned runs/82 innings pitched) with nine walks in 82 innings. At OKC, he went 5-5 with a 3.89 ERA (33 earned runs/761/3 innings pitched) to go along with 55 strikeouts and 13 walks.

OF Adron Chambers, 27, played in 25 games for the St. Louis Cardinals last season, his third straight year to play in the Majors. He spent the majority of his season at Triple-A Memphis, hitting .252 (84-for-333) with 13 doubles, eight homers, 43 RBIs and 16 stolen bases. He has appeared in 84 Major League games in his career, all coming with the Cardinals from 2011-13.

SS Carlos Correa, 19, who was the first overall selection in the 2012 draft, played his first full professional season at Quad Cities last year, posting a .320 (144-for-450) batting average with 33 doubles, nine home runs and 86 RBIs in 117 games. Defensively, he led all Midwest League shortstops in fielding percentage while playing the entire season at the age of 18. According to MLB.com, Correa is the Astros No. 1 prospect and ranks as the No. 3 shortstop prospect in all of baseball.

RHP Rhiner Cruz, 27, was outrighted off of the Astros’ 40-man roster onDec. 23, 2013, after having two stints in the Major Leagues with Houston last season. Over those two stints, Cruz posted a 3.38 ERA (eight earned runs/211/3 innings pitched) in 20 appearances. The right-handed reliever has made 72 appearances with the Astros over the last two years after being selected with the first overall pick in the 2011 Rule 5 Major League draft.

RHP Jorge De Leon, 26, posted a 5.40 ERA (six earned runs/10 innings pitched) in 11 games across two stints for the Astros in 2013. He was one of 10 Astros pitchers to make their Major League debut last season, making his on Aug. 9 vs. Texas. The former Minor League infielder converted to the mound in 2010 and has pitched the last four seasons in the Astros system. He was outrighted off the Astros 40-man roster following the season on Oct. 17.

CF Delino DeShields, 21, will be a non-roster invite at Major League Spring Training for his second consecutive season. In 2013 at Lancaster, DeShields hit .317 (143-for-451) with 100 runs scored, 25 doubles, 14 triples, five homers, 51 stolen bases and a .405 on-base percentage. The eighth-overall selection in the 2010 draft will come to Spring Training as an outfielder after playing second base in each of his last three professional seasons.

RHP Bobby Doran, 24, combined to go 11-2 with a 3.51 ERA (54 earned runs/1381/3 innings pitched) in 31 games with OKC (eight games) and Corpus Christi (23gs) last season. The 6-foot-6 right-handed starter was originally drafted by Houston in the fourth round of the 2010 draft out of Texas Tech. The 2014 season will be his fifth in the Astros; organization.

RHP Mike Foltynewicz, 22, went 6-3 with a 3.06 ERA (44 earned runs/129 1/3 innings pitched) in 30 games combined with Corpus Christi (23 games/16 starts) and Lancaster (seven games/five starts) last season. The hard-throwing, right-hander registered 124 strikeouts in his 129 1/3 innings pitched last season, while allowing just a .226 opponent’s batting average, including a .207 mark at the Double-A level. He was originally the 19th overall selection in the 2010 Draft.

C Rene Garcia, 23, will be making his fourth consecutive appearance as a non-roster invite at the Astros Major League Spring Training camp. He spent his 2013 season between Oklahoma City (18 games) and Corpus Christi (73 games), combining to hit .293 (108-for-368) with 20 doubles, five home runs and 42 RBIs. Known as a strong defensive catcher, Garcia caught 29 of 63 attempting basestealers (46 percent) in 2013.

C Tyler Heineman, 22, hit .286 (106-for-370) with 23 doubles, 13 home runs and 71 RBIs in 104 games with Lancaster last season. The switch-hitting catcher is entering his third professional season, and just his second full season, after being selected out of UCLA in the eighth round of the June 2012 Draft.

OF Leo Heras, 23, like Amador, was acquired by Houston on Aug. 18, 2013, from Los Diablos Rojos del Mexico of the Mexican League. After his acquisition, he played in 10 games for Corpus Christi, posting two doubles, one triple, one home run and five RBIs for the Hooks. In 91 games for the Diablos Rojos last season, Heras hit .310 (104-for-335) with 19 doubles, nine triples, 11 homers, 42 RBIs, 14 stolen bases and a .398 OBP.

OF J.D. Martinez, 26, hit .250 (74-for-296) with 17 doubles, seven home runs and 36 RBIs in 86 games for the Astros last season before being outrighted off of the club’s 40-man roster on Nov. 20, 2013. Following the 2013 regular season, Martinez played in 24 games for Caracas in the Venezuelan Winter League, posting a .312 (29-for-93) average with six doubles, six home runs and 18 RBIs. He has appeared in 252 games for Houston over the last three seasons (2011-13).

3B Jonathan Meyer, 23, hit .260 (126-for-484) with 24 doubles, 15 home runs and 68 RBIs en route to being named a Texas League All-Star in 2013. He was the Hooks’ everyday third baseman, making 123 starts at the position. Following the season, Meyer played for Peoria in the Arizona Fall League, hitting .286 (14-for-49) with three doubles, one homer and seven RBIs.

RHP Peter Moylan, 35, made 14 appearances across two Major League stints with the Dodgers last season. He spent the majority of his 2013 campaign at Triple-A Albuquerque, posting a 4-1 record with four saves and a 2.74 ERA (14 earned runs/46 innings pitched) in 38 appearances. Moylan has pitched in the Major Leagues in each of the last eight years with Atlanta (2006-12) and Los Angeles (2013), making 309 career relief appearances and posting a 21-9 record and 2.80 ERA (86 earned runs/276 innings pitched).

C Carlos Perez, 23, will be making his second straight appearance at Astros Major League Spring Training. He split his 2013 season between Oklahoma City (75 games) and Corpus Christi (16), hitting .271 (86-for-317) with 18 doubles and 37 RBIs. The 2014 campaign will be Perez’s second full season in the Astros system after being acquired in Houston’s 10-player trade with Toronto at the 2012 trading deadline.

IF Gregorio Petit, 29, is joining the Astros from the Padres organization, where he hit .292 (147-for-503) with 26 doubles and 61 RBIs in 134 games at Triple-A Tucson last season. He also had a solid winter league season, hitting .312 (48-for-154) with 12 doubles, 10 homers and 27 RBIs with Caracas in the Venezuelan Winter League. Petit has some Major League experience, appearing in 25 games with Oakland in the 2008-09 seasons and hitting .278 (15-for-54) in those contests.

OF George Springer, 24, was named the Astros Minor League Player of the Year after combining to hit .303 (149-for-492) with 106 runs scored, 27 doubles, 37 home runs, 108 RBIs and 45 stolen bases with OKC (62 games) and Corpus Christi (73 games) last season. He became the first Astros Minor Leaguer to ever reach the 30-homer, 30-steal plateau and fell just three home runs shy of reaching the 40-40 mark, which hasn’t been accomplished in Minor League baseball since 1956. He was originally the 11th overall selection in the June 2011 draft.

RHP Jason Stoffel, 25, posted a solid season in 2013 while pitching in relief for Oklahoma City (44 games) and Corpus Christi (seven games). He combined to go 8-1 with five saves and a 3.23 ERA (25 earned runs/692/3 innings pitched) in 51 appearances, while allowing just a .232 opponent’s batting average. A Triple-A All-Star in 2013, Stoffel was one of two players acquired by Houston from San Francisco in exchange for IF Jeff Keppinger on July 19, 2011.

IF Ronald Torreyes, 21, was originally acquired by Houston on July 2, 2013, from Chicago (NL) in exchange for international signing pool space. On the season, Torreyes combined to hit .269 (101-for-375) with 19 doubles and 37 RBIs for Corpus Christi (38 games) and Double-A Tennessee (65 games). Over his four Minor League seasons, the middle infielder has recorded more walks (98) than strikeouts (96) in 376 career games.

RHP Nick Tropeano, 23, spent his third professional season at Corpus Christi and led the Texas League with 130 strikeouts last season. In what was his first taste of the Double-A level, the fifth-round selection in the 2011 Draft posted a 7-10 record with one complete game, five saves and a 4.11 ERA (61 earned runs/133 2/3 innings pitched) in 28 games, including 20 starts. Tropeano has posted 359 strikeouts in 345 innings in his career in the Astros; Minor League system.

OF Preston Tucker, 23, split his first full professional season with Lancaster (75 games) and Corpus Christi (60 games) after getting drafted by the Astros in the seventh round of the 2012 draft. He combined to hit .297 (159-for-535) with 32 doubles, 25 homers, 97 runs scored, 103 RBIs and an .872 OPS in 135 games between the two levels. Tucker finished his season ranking tied for seventh in all of Minor League baseball in RBIs.

The Astros will hold their first full-squad workout on Sunday, when all 63 players in Major League camp are scheduled to hit the field for the first time this spring. Manager Brad Mills expects everyone to report by Sunday morning.

“We’re very happy with the six days we’ve had [with pitchers and catchers] and now we’re ready to move forward,” he said.

In fact, the Astros have had a huge number of position players participating in drills for the last few days, a number that’s growing daily. Non-roster outfielder Brandon Barnes, who showed up Friday, was on the field for the first time Saturday.

The only players who hadn’t worked out at Osceola County Stadium by Saturday were outfielders Carlos Lee and Jonathan Singleton and infielder Jonathan Villar. Position players aren’t required to report until Sunday morning, when they will be given physicals prior to take the field.

Here’s the day in photos:

His back feeling better, Wandy Rodriguez took the mound Saturday.

David Carpenter throws in the bullpen wiht Jon Matlack watching.

Jason Castro and David Carpenter talk after their bullpen.

Doug Brocail gives some pointers to Lucas Harrell.

Conditioning drills capped the day for the pitchers.

Brett Wallace swings in the cage.

Right-handers Jarred Cosart and Mike Foltynewicz and left-hander Brett Oberholtzer – three young pitchers ranked among the Astros’ top seven prospects by MLB.com – were among seven hurlers who participated Saturday in the first day a Minor League mini camp.

The other participants are right-handers Jake Buchanan, Ross Seaton, Josh Zeid and Jason Stoffel and catchers Miles Hamblin, Ryan McCurdy, Roberto Pena and Mike Kvasnicka. Astros general manager Jeff Luhnow, who watched the pitchers throw, said the young arms will get some innings in Grapefruit League games.

Here’s a quick Q and A with Foltynewicz:

Q: What are you hoping to get out of the Minor League mini camp?

A: “Trying to work on the things we left off on in instructional ball, trying to get the command of the strike zone down. I’m really just trying to get a head start along with these seven guys to get ready for a good season.”

Q: How excited are you about a chance to pitch in a big-league Spring Training game?

A: “Heard about that probably a month ago, and it made me want to work even harder. That’s my ultimate goal, and it’s that little bit more motivation.”

Q: How big of a year is this for you?

A: “It’s a pretty big year. Last year, I had good games and had bad games, and this year I just have to put it all together and find that happy medium. I think it’s a big year to prove myself to a lot of the doubters out there, so it’s a pretty big year.”

Q: What’s it like to be a part of this group of talented young arms coming up?

A: “It’s pretty exciting. Later on down the road, this is going to be a great Houston Astros team. we’ve got a lot of good arms and I’m really excited for the future.”

Here’s a quick Q and A with Jarred Cosart:

Q: What are you hoping to get out of the Minor League mini camp?

A: “It’s great. I was bummed at first about not coming to big league camp, but it happens and there’s nothing I can do about it. I can’t control it. That’s what Fred and all the guys told me today, to come out here and pitch and getting down here early just helps me get a little jump on everybody else coming to Minor League camp. It’s a good group of guys and I had Brocail and a lot of the big league guys watching today, so it’s really not much different than over there.”

Q: Are you excited about the chance of pitching in a Grapefruit League game?

A: “This would be my first chance. They said be ready to throw in multiple big league games. They’re getting us ready as if we’re in big league camp and I’ve heard they’re having a lot of split squad games to get a lot of the younger guys over there who are fighting for that fifth spot. They’re going to have openings. They said to be ready for a couple of games.”

“I got open ears to anything. Matlack pitched in the big leagues for 15 years a while back and Brocail just recently came out of the game and he’s been a big league pitching coach for two or three years now. They know what they’re talking about, as do all these coaches. I’m always open to any advice, mechanical, mental, whatever. They just said I’ll make a lot of money if I pitch down. That’s pretty much the basics of pitching. Right now it’s staying consistent and doing the little things. They said the stuff is there and the name of the game is mix pitches and staying down in the zone, and I have a chance to be pretty good if I can do that.”

Foltynewicz, the hard-throwing right-handed pitcher the Astros selected with the 19th overall pick Monday in the First-Year Player Draft, could be in Houston next week to sign the contract and begin his professional career.

“Some of the other things regarding school and other stuff have to be worked out,” Witt said. “As far as the Astros and terms, they have been agreed upon.”

The Astros, as policy, won’t acknowledge a deal is in place until a contract is signed.

Foltynewicz, 6-foot-4, 190 pounds, sits in the low 90s mph with his fastball and has touched 96 with a good changeup. He’s the first pitcher taken in the first round by the Astros since left-hander Brian Bogusevic in 2005, but Bogusevic has since been moved to the outfield.

“My goals are to try to get to the pros as soon as I can, within two or three years,” he said after being drafted. “I feel real confident about that. I’m a real hard worker and I’m going to listen to everything that everyone has to say. I’ll take criticism the right way, learn from it and I want to try to get up soon.”

Foltynewicz went 9-1 with a 0.38 ERA and 128 strikeouts in 72 2/3 innings this year for Minooka Community High School in the Chicago area.

Mike Foltynewicz, the hard-throwing right-handed pitcher the Astros selected with the 19th overall pick Monday in the First-Year Player Draft, said Tuesday he’s more likely to sign with the Astros than go to the University of Texas.

“I want to get my professional career headed out in the right way and right now I’m definitely going to considering starting my professional career,” he said.

Foltynewicz, 6-foot-4, 190 pounds, sits in the low 90s mph with his fastball and has touched 96 with a good changeup. He’s the first pitcher taken in the first round by the Astros since left-hander Brian Bogusevic in 2005, but Bogusevic has since been moved to the outfield.

“My goals are to try to get to the pros as soon as I can, within two or three years,” he said. “I feel real confident about that. I’m a real hard worker and I’m going to listen to everything that everyone has to say. I’ll take criticism the right way, learn from it and I want to try to get up soon.”

Foltynewicz went 9-1 with a 0.38 ERA and 128 strikeouts in 72 2/3 innings this year for Minooka Community High School in the Chicago area.

He throws a four-seam fastball, two-seam fastball, slider, curveball and a changeup. His can get up to 96 mph with his four-seam fastball in early innings, and will sit at 91-94 mph. His two-seamer is 88-91 with good movement, and he has a 12-to-6 curveball that ranges from 71-74 mph. His changeup is 84 mph with some movement.

“I’ve had a curveball all my life and last summer I started working on the slider more, just another pitch to get in there,” he said. “That’s been working great for me. It looks like my fastball coming in, but just has that break to the left. Both those pitches are really great for me. I can throw them for strikes.”

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